BRUSSELS 26/10/2002 (ANA - D. Stamboglis)

The road for an agreement for the creation of the ''Euroforce''
has been opened, Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis said on Friday
during a press conference here, after the end of an informal EU
summit.

It is an issue between the European Union and NATO, Simitis added,
stressing that it is not a Greek-Turkish affair or an EU-Turkish
affair.

On Friday, in Brussels the 15 Union leaders approved a text that
concerns the cooperation of the EU member-states in peacekeeping
missions with NATO infrastructures.

Also, the summit's conclusions included a second text, in which
the principles of the EU treaties and those of the United Nations'
Charter are reaffirmed and presents a framework for the actions of
the European Union.

According to Simitis the 15 leaders agreed on the two texts and
asked of European Union security and defense high representative
Javier Solana to discuss the issue with NATO, so that the two sides
may come to an agreement.

''At that time we will refer to a third text and then there will
be a common statement between the EU and NATO concerning the
Euroforce issue,'' Simitis said, adding that ''it is expected that
the whole issue will conclude in Prague, during the NATO summit
set for November 22 and 23''.

''With a common statement we will reaffirm our common principles.
Now the EU member-states and the non-EU member-states, but NATO
members will forge forward in common peacekeeping actions with NATO
infrastructure,'' Simitis said.

''The European Union comes out ahead because it strengthens its
position in the European space. It will also be able to undertake
initiatives and contribute to peace. It is an important step and
the capabilities that are given should be utilized,'' he noted.

''In the event that the EU and NATO agree on text No 3 and of course
there is the common statement, then the EU will be able to undertake
the peacekeeping process in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
(FYROM) beginning on December 15,'' the Greek premier said.

''It will be the first peacekeeping mission of the European Union
in the aforementioned framework,'' Simitis said.

Speaking on his assessment of the final outcome concerning the
Euroforce, Simitis said ''I am optimistic that there will be a
final outcome, but I am not certain that there will be a final
outcome''.

The premier clarified that all the aforementioned texts ''are
complementary to each other and all of them together create the
full picture in the issue's development. With today's decisions,
the principle of the EU autonomy of decision was secured''.

It should be noted, he added, that for Greece the issue of the
Euroforce was connected with the country's all other objectives in
the European Union.

The premier concluded that a strong EU is secured, one that will
develop relations with NATO on an equal footing, it is a very
important step, which needs several more actions-decisions.

BRUSSELS, 26/10/2002 (ANA - G. Zitouniati, Ch. Poulidou, V. Demiris)

European Union security and defense high representative Javier
Solana on Friday announced that a European agreement was struck
concerning the ''Euroforce''.

He specified that the 15 leaders of the Union approved a plan for
the resolution of problems concerning the ''Euroforce'' and he was
given the mandate to negotiate it with NATO over the coming days.

''This is a significant moment and we want this process to conclude
before the NATO summit, which will take place on November 21-22 in
Prague,'' Solana said.

Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou on Friday appeared satisfied
of the common position the European Union's 15 leaders arrived at
on the issue of the ''Euroforce''.

Speaking to journalists, Papandreou said that the text to which
the 15 agreed on secures the principle of autonomy of EU and NATO,
as well as the issue of national sovereignty of states and the
respect for the national interests of all member-states, taking
out of the text any possible discriminatory treatment for any
country.

This agreement, Papandreou said, also secures the principle for
the non-use of violence, expressing the hope that this text will
be accepted by Turkey and thus finalize the agreement over the next
few days.

Solana also stressed that it is a text ''that will be included in
the conclusions of the Summit, that could be acceptable by Turkey'',
adding that it is a ''good compromise''.

He announced that he would discuss the agreement text with Turkish
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit on Monday, while later the same text
will be discussed officially in NATO, expressing his hope that it
will be adopted.

Solana noted that after the agreement is finalized, the Union will
be in a position to exercise its responsibilities regarding
peacekeeping missions and the operational capability of a rapid
reaction force, by the beginning of next year.

''We dedicated many hours to this agreement. The time spent is
indicative of the emphasis the Union places on the security and
defense policy,'' Solana said.

Responding to questions, Solana said that the agreement will be
relevant only in the event that the Union uses NATO infrastructures.

BRUSSELS, 28/10/2002 (ANA - M. Spinthourakis)

Prime Minister Costas Simitis on Friday expressed his full satisfaction
over the outcome of the informal EU summit here both with regard
to Cyprus' accession to the EU and on agricultural expenditure.

Speaking at the close of the summit, Simitis said that for now
there is no problem regarding Cyprus' EU accession and that what
remains is for the final step to be taken at the EU summit in
Copenhagen in December.

European Union leaders meeting in Brussels on Friday night endorsed
the recommendations of the Commission that Cyprus and nine other
countries become members of the EU in 2004.

According to the final conclusions of the Brussels informal European
Council, the 15 leaders agreed that all ten countries fulfill the
political criteria for accession and will be able to fulfill the
economic criteria and assume the obligations of membership from
the beginning of 2004.

The Union confirmed its determination to conclude accession
negotiations with these countries - namely Cyprus, the Czech

Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the
Slovak Republic and Slovenia - at the European Council in Copenhagen
on 12-13 December and sign the Accession Treaty in Athens in April
2003.

The Greek prime minister noted that the informal summit in Brussels
reconfirmed the decisions of the Helsinki summit which refer among
other things that a settlement of the Cyprus issue does not constitute
a prerequisite for Cyprus' accession to the European Union.

On EU-Turkey relations, Simitis noted that although Turkey has made
progress towards fulfilling the political and economic criteria of
the Copenhagen summit, this progress must continue to enable the
EU to set a date for the start of talks for Turkey's accession to
the EU.

Referring to Bulgaria and Romania, the prime minister said the
''15'' decided on Friday that if the course of reforms continues,
these two countries will be able to achieve their objective of
joining the EU in 2007.

On the other decisions of the summit here, and particularly on the
credits concerning the agricultural expenditure, the prime minister
also expressed his satisfaction, noting that the decisions reached
will hardly have any adverse affect on Greek farmers.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Main opposition New Democracy (ND) spokesman Theodoros Roussopoulos,
referring to the informal EU summit in Brussels, in an announcement
on Friday expressed satisfaction on the positions for European
enlargement and said his party anticipates that these positions
will also be reconfirmed at the EU summit in Copenhagen in December.

On developments in the shaping of a new Common Agricultural Policy
in light of EU enlargement, the spokesman said it was clear that
from 2006 there will be a reduction in subsidies for the agricultural
sector.

He said the government was obliged to secure that with the new CAP
which will go into effect from 2006, the revenue from the EU, both
for the agricultural sector as well as from the structural funds,
will not be restricted in a way unfair for Greece.

BRUSSELS, 26/10/2002 (ANA - V. Demiris)

Greece and Turkey agreed to postpone the military exercises they
had programmed for November, Prime Minister Costas Simitis announced
on Friday here, during a press conference at the end of an informal
EU summit.

Specifically, Greece and the Greek-Cypriot sides postpone the
''Toxotis'' and ''Nikiforos'' exercises and Turkey postpones the
''Tavros'' exercise, Simitis said.

The Greek premier said that this development proves a dynamic for
the formulation of positions that will secure even better Greece's
interests in the political and economic sector, as well as in the
sector of Greece's international relations.

On his part, Foreign Minister George Papandreou stressed that this
decision contributes to the creation of a climate of trust in
Eastern Mediterranean.

BRUSSELS, 26/10/2002 (ANA - M. Spinthourakis, Ch. Poulidou)

Greece, together Spain, Finland and Austria, have objected to
German-French proposals for a 'freeze' on European Union farm
expenditure after the year 2006, Greece's prime minister Costas
Simitis said early Friday, after the first session of the interim
EU summit in Brussels.

Speaking to reporters after the first round of summit talks, during
a working dinner, in the Belgian capital late Thursday night,
Simitis noted that the primary target, for Greece, was to ensure
the completion of the issue of EU enlargement and Cyprus' accession
at the 15-nation-bloc's summit in Copenhagen in December.

Elaborating on Thursday night's deliberations, Simitis said that
there were two trends in the EU regarding farm spending. The first
trend, spearheaded by Germany, sought the greatest possible cutback
in farm spending, the premier said, adding that the second trend,
endorsed by the countries of the European South, felt that farm
spending should continue to increase after the Union's enlargement.

Simitis said that France and Germany informed their EU partners
Thursday night on the content of their compromise agreement, which
foresees that EU farm spending would not be reduced up to the year
2006, but would be essentially 'frozen' after that date and be
placed on a regime of automatic cost-of-living indexation. According
to the French-German calculations, he continued, the mean annual
increase in farm spending after 2006 would be 1.5 percent.

Greece, however, was in favor of a European Commission proposal
that farm spending for the new members be gradually increased up
to the year 2013, although noting that the Berlin agreement on the
EU's finances had a termination date of 2006.

Simitis also noted that the German-French proposal did not affect
EE spending on agricultural development, an issue which he said
was of direct interest to Greece due to its large number of small
farms.

Turning to the issue of the European rapid reaction force, Simitis
referred to talks he had on Thursday with Xavier Solana, who also
had talks earlier in the day with Greece's Foreign

Minister George Papandreou. The discussions focused mainly on the
question of under what conditions the EU would use NATO means for
the needs of its defense policy, or cooperation with NATO members
who did not belong to the EU.

Simitis said the goal is to achieve a clearly-defined, explicit
single position of the '15'.

BRUSSELS, 26/10/2002 (ANA H. Poulidou)

EU leaders gathered here for a summit focusing on the Unions historic
expansion reiterated their preference that a "reunited Cyprus" be
admitted into the Union by 2004, although they reaffirmed that the
island republic would be admitted regardless of a resolution to
Cyprus division.

Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou told reporters on Friday
that the 15 also reaffirmed the Helsinki agreement calling on the
leaders of the two communities on the island to work towards a
resolution.

Regarding the EU prospects of Bulgaria and Romania, candidacies
that Athens has vigorously backed over recent years, Papandreou
said the Greek government will work at the upcoming Copenhagen so
that both Sofia and Bucharests commitment to fully meet criteria
for accession by 2007 is recorded.

Referring to Turkey, Papandreou reminded that Athens supports that
countrys European course, something that is at the heart of Ankaras
deliberations with the EU. Additionally, he said a decisive role
in Ankaras long-standing desire for a date to begin accession
negotiations would emanate from the outcome of early Novembers
general elections in Turkey.

Commitments by the new Turkish government will have a major impact
for this issue at the Copenhagen, he stressed.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

The government on Friday again responded to press queries regarding
reported Turkish infringements in the Aegean over the past week,
as the latest question centered over whether Turkish jetfighters
harassed French warplanes over the island of Andros during a
Greek-French training exercise.

Acting government spokesman Telemachos Hytiris merely noted that
the governments readiness vis-a-vis Turkey is standing, with policy
conducted within the NATO and EU bodies when necessary.

At a moment when discussions over expansion are underway in the
European Union ... cool-headedness and repose towards Turkey must
be exhibited, he added during a regular press briefing.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

The meeting unanimously adopted a Greek proposal to take advantage
of the Greek EU presidency in order to enhance EU relations with
the BSEC. The Greek presidency intends to promote talks on a
political level between the two organizations and to organize a
meeting in Thessaloniki for European, Black Sea and Caucasus business
people.

They also agreed to begin a cultural communications network linking
ports in Greece and the Black Sea.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Magriotis had talks with Albanian
Prime Minister Fatos Nano, Albanian Foreign Minister Ilir Meta and
other local officials.

During the meetings, Magriotis stressed that Greece would continue
to support Albania's European prospects and contribute to its
development and modernization. He also noted that Greece was
particularly interested in Albania's ethnic Greek minority, which
it considered a "bridge of communication and friendship" between
the two countries.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

President of the Republic Costis Stephanopoulos will pay a state
visit to South Africa next week, at the invitation of his S. African
counterpart Thabo Mbeki.

Stephanopoulos, who will be accompanied by Deputy Foreign Ministers
Yannis Magriotis and Andreas Loverdos, will be in S. Africa from
October 29 to November 2, for talks with Mbeki on bilateral issues,
mainly economic matters, as well as international affairs.

The President, who will visit Cape Town and Johannesburg, will also
meet with members of the Greek community of S. Africa.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Chief of the Swedish Armed Forces, General Johan Hederstedt, will
pay an official visit to Greece next week at the invitation of
Greek counterpart Gen. George Antonakopoulos.

During his four-day visit, from October 27 to 30, Hederstedt will
meet with the Armed Forces' military and civilian leadership to
discuss matters of mutual military interest. He will also visit
Naval and Air Force units for briefings on their activities.

BRUSSELS, 27/10/2002 (ANA - G. Zitouniati)

Turkey's Islamic leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan requested of the Greek
government to visit Greece, Prime Minister Costas Simitis revealed
on Friday, after the end of the EU summit here.

''Erdogan's stance allows us to hope that there will be constructive
dialogue on issues of common interest. We should not be prejudiced
against any Turkish party,'' Simitis said, referring to the
pre-election conditions in the neighboring country.

The premier also said that he may have contacts with Deniz Baikal,
whom he met time and time again in the Socialist International.

Athens, 26/0/2002 (ANA)

President of the Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos on Friday expressed
his abhorrence over the taking of hundreds of hostages by Chechen
rebels in a Moscow theatre.

On arrival in Thessaloniki to attend the October 28 national holiday
celebrations, Stephanopoulos said ''we are witness to a criminal
act,'' against innocent people which regardless of its cause, is
condemned by all.

Noting that the world ''is going through a difficult time,'' the
president said that in view of the dangers on the international
horizon, Greeks are obliged to remain united and on the alert and
be prepared to confront any situation.

The protagonist of the Moscow Art Theatre, Irina Miroshinshenko,
which is performing in Thessaloniki, expressed shock over the tragic
events in Moscow, stating that she and the other performers are in
constant touch with colleagues and relatives to hear the latest
news about the tragic event.

Miroshinshenko, 58, is a member of the Moscow Art Theatre since
1965.

Greece's solidarity with Moscow over hostage situation

Greece on Friday expressed hope for a "good ending" to the hostage
situation in a Moscow theatre, and its solidarity with the Russian
government.

"Greece hopes and wishes for an auspicious end to the dramatic
event in the Russian capital, and expresses its solidarity with
the Russian government," government spokesman Tele-machos Hytiris
said.

Hytiris said that there were no Greeks among the hostages, according
to "all the indications we have from the Greek embassy in Moscow".

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Theologos Psaradelis, an alleged ''November 17'' terrorist, on
Friday gave his statement to Appellate Court Prosecutor Leonidas
Zervobeakos in response charges filled against him in connection
with the murder of U.S. Navy Cpt. George Tsades in November 1983
and a robbery.

According to sources he accepted the charges of participating in
the robbery, saying however that he did not know that it was
organized by ''N 17''.

According to the same sources he denounced terrorism, saying that
he never supported terrorist actions even during the 1967-1974
dictatorship, a period that he was very active.

Athens, 22/10/2002 (ANA)

A public prosecutor said on Friday that a legal deadline had passed
for parliament to seek criminal charges against former deputy
minister George Drys in a case involving alleged irregularities in
a nationwide scratch lottery.

Parliament has in its possession a prosecution file saying that
evidence in the case pointed to Drys, who is now agriculture
minister.

In a letter to parliament speaker Apostolos Kaklamanis, the prosecutor
said the deadline to set up a criminal enquiry fell at the end of
this year's parliamentary session ending in June 2002.

The main opposition New Democracy (ND) party is likely to seek
creation of a fact-finding committee to look into political
responsibility for the case. Under the expired process, criminal
responsibility would have been investigated, ND sources said.

According to the findings given to parliament, responsibility in
the case was shared by Drys and board members of Athens-quoted
Intralot, which ran the ''Xysto'' lottery.

The investigation was launched over a year ago to look into a
complaint that distribution of lottery profits to winners was
inadequately monitored.

In addition, renewal of the contract with the Scratch Lottery
Consortium on July 31, 1998 was illegal, the findings said.

The complaint also accused Drys of tolerating the consortium's
failure to meet its contractual obligation of electronically
monitoring winnings.

An appeals court public prosecutor had then asked for a preliminary
inquiry into whether the distribution of winnings was electronically
monitored; whether the consortium had met its contractual obligations;
and whether contract renewal had been legal, as Intralot owned 60
percent of the consortium.

Investigators were also asked to look into 7.6 billion drachmas
spent on advertising in the first four years of the lottery's
operation.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Helexpo's chairman, Vasilios Kourtesis, on Friday urged for a closer
cooperation between the public and private sectors on a long-term
planning and implementation of policies and business activities to
maintain and expand the competitiveness of the country's tourist
product.

Speaking to reporters, during a news conference on the occasion of
the 18th Philoxenia International Tourism Trade Fair, to be held
in the Thessaloniki Trade Centre October 31-November 3, Mr. Kourtesis
stressed that the 18th Philoxenia maintained the quality, size and
dynamism of the large tourist trade fair market despite a crisis
in the international tourism sector in 2002.

Helexpo has organized a series of parallel events during the
Philoxenia trade fair. This year's focus is ''Tourism and Sports''.

Development Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos is expected to discuss
with Russia's tourism minister ways to speed up visa issuance
procedures, a major problem in facilitating tourist arrivals to
Greece. The two ministers are expected to meet October 31.

Greece's National Tourist Organization chairman, Ioannis Patelis,
speaking to reporters urged for drastic changes in the quality and
quantity of Greek tourist product.

"We have to sweat a lot to maintain our position," Mr. Patelis
said, referring to the likely impact of September 11 attacks in
the US, and to a recent wave of terrorist attacks in Bali and
Moscow. "We have to cooperate closely with the private sector and
to leave behind our slogan of Sun-Sea-Beach," he said.

Mr. Patelis stressed the need to seek new tourist markets, mainly
in Asia, and to promote new tourist products. He said that the
Greek tourist market was expected to decline by 1-2.0 percent this
year, despite Bank of Greece's estimates of a 2.5 percent increase
in tourist foreign exchange revenues.

Greek Agriculture Minister George Drys on Friday met visiting EU
official Jorgen Holmquist, the new head of the European Commission's
fisheries division, to discuss the management of fishing reserves
in the Mediterranean.

Among actions being mulled by the Commission is a Fisheries conference
with the participation of all Mediterranean countries and measures
to ensure greater discipline in managing fishing reserves and to
crack down on illegal fishing and over-fishing.

Drys said that Athens supported the Commission's proposals for the
Mediterranean and was prepared to undertake initiatives to ensure
their success. He noted that Greece could undertake to organize a
Mediterranean conference on fishing during the first half of 2003,
when Greece took over the EU presidency, so that there could be an
in-depth discussion of EU proposals.

He also pointed out that Mediterranean EU member-states were
conscious of the need for more coordinated action on over fishing
by all Mediterranean countries and also by fishing craft originating
in countries far from Mediterranean shores.

The Greek minister further stressed the importance of EU
social-structural measures for Greek fishermen and said that Athens
would on no account agree on these being scaled down under a revision
of Common Fisheries Policy.

Following his meeting with the minister, Holmquist also met with
high-ranking agriculture ministry officials.

Macedonia-Thrace Minister George Paschalidis said on Friday that
he wanted coordination in the road building sector with the country's
Balkan neighbors so that Greek highways to the border continued
northwards.

"We would like coordination with adjoining countries. We do not
wish to see highways that lead nowhere. These roads should give
form to Balkan cooperation," Paschalidis told a meeting of northern
local authorities.

Hellenic Telecommunications Organization (OTE), a heavily traded
stock on the Athens bourse, said on Friday that it had received
approval from Romania's government for a share capital increase of
200 million US dollars to be staged by Romtelecom.

The increase had been sought by OTE, which wants to raise its stake
in the Romanian telecom to a majority holding of 51 percent.

[20] Gov't says budget for Athens 2004 Olympics in line with PM's
target

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

The government said on Friday that its updated projects budget for
the Athens 2004 Olympics was in line with targets set by Prime
Minister Costas Simitis.

The secretary general for the Olympic Games, Kostas Kartalis, told
reporters that a key element in keeping to the original 4.8 billion
euros requested by Simitis were discounts offered by contractors
undertaking the projects, totalling about 265 million euros.

Kartalis added that cost rises in some projects were more than
offset by the contractors' discounts.

The budget is handled by Kartalis' department and the finance
ministry.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Parliament President Apostolos Kaklamanis on Friday issued a message
in light of the Oct. 28 national holiday, marking the beginning of
the Second World War for Greece.

In commemorating the victory of the Greek Armed Forces against the
Fascist Italian invasion of Greece on Oct. 28 1940, Kaklamanis said
that the ''No'' cried out by the generation of the 1940s ''remains
always an inexhaustible beacon of freedom, patriotism and heroism''.

On his part, Defense Minister Yiannos Papantoniou said that ''Greece
today inspired by the epic 1940, supports justice and the values
of democracy and human dignity and participates actively in all
efforts for the solidification of conditions of peace and freedom
around the world''.

The Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) in its message
for the national holiday said that unfortunately even to this day
the non-negotiable values of freedom, independence, democracy and
the respect of international law are not self evident.

Democratic Social Movement (DHKKI) leader Dimitris Tsovolas in his
message said that the best honor for the fighters of the 1940s, as
well those to the Polytechnic University of Athens uprising against
the dictatorship is resistance to defeatism and lack of national
dignity.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

An exhibition on the history of writing through the ages, on loan
from the Warzburg University in Germany and enriched by material
from the Epigraphical Museum in Athens, will open its doors at
Athens university's Kostis Palamas building on October 31 and run
until the end of November.

The collection is currently on display in the town of Wurzburg in
Germany and spans the history of writing in all cultures from the
earliest Neolithic symbols and ideograms circa 3000 B.C. to modern
printed letters. The exhibition also spans all cultures, from
runic scripts to Chinese ideograms and Egyptian hieroglyphs and
also includes a section on musical notation. In Greece, it will
further include characteristic examples of Greek inscriptions that
illustrate the development of Greek script, in particular.

The exhibition is taking place under the auspices of the culture
ministry and will be officially inaugurated next Thursday at 18:00.

It will be open to the public between 10:00-13:00 and 17:00-20:00
daily, except on November 16-17, and entrance will be free of
charge.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

The Greek pharmaceuticals organization EOF on Friday warned the
public to avoid eating wild mushrooms due to a European-wide shortage
of the mushroom-poisoning antidote "Legalon", caused by production
problems at the plant producing the drug

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

A total of 24 illegal immigrants were spotted and arrested on a
tiny islet near the eastern Aegean island of Hios late Thursday
evening, the coast guard announced.

Authorities said the illegals, 13 women and 11 men, hailed from
Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea, Iran and the Palestinian territories.
According to reports, the would-be migrants said they were ferried
to the small islet of Panagia, in the Oinousses chain off Hios,
from the adjacent Turkish coast.

Athens, 26/10/2002 (ANA)

Three Bulgarian nationals were arrested in Athens this week on
multiple charges related to a forged passport ring, after authorities
found 55 passports, including blank ones, issued by mainly west
European countries in the trios vehicle.

The three suspects were identified as Christo Christov, 27, Petia
Loseva, 38, and Atanas Borgradov, 34.

According to reports, police found a notebook allegedly belonging
to Loseva listing dates, bank codes and cash amounts from the sale
of forged passports. Belgian, Norwegian, Spanish and several blank
French passports were recovered.